


All That Really Mattered

by castletown_ranger



Series: Maybe the Real Wolfie Was the Friend We Made Along the Way [5]
Category: Linked Universe - Fandom
Genre: And is thrust into a situation where he has to make a decision, Four is a supportive friend, Ohhh boy, Twilight does some deep self reflecting, We love a fambly, ohhh boy oh boy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-02
Updated: 2019-11-02
Packaged: 2021-01-16 18:35:02
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,308
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21275810
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/castletown_ranger/pseuds/castletown_ranger
Summary: They sat in silence as the rest of the sun dipped below the horizon. Dusk settled like a blanket over the land, and pinpoints of distant light began to dot the skies. Twi would have been content to sit there and watch the stars for the rest of the night, had he not heard Wild’s confused voice call from behind him.“Hey, Twilight? What’s this?”





	All That Really Mattered

**Author's Note:**

> The fifth and final part of this little series about Wolfie. This one's for you, Ammy.

Twilight wasn’t sure how he felt about being back in his Hyrule. He missed his home, of course, but he couldn’t shake the weight from his shoulders while sitting in the Faron Woods again. 

Ordon was so close. And he dreaded the questions he knew he’d be asked when he returned.  _ Where have you been, Link? Are you alright? Are we in danger again? Why did you disappear? Why did you disappear again, Link? Why did you disappear again?  _

The place where he was dragged into the Twilight-covered Hyrule for the first time was very close as well. Twi remembered the feeling of the dark, icy hand bursting from the shadows and wrapping around his throat. How he clawed for air. How the Triforce of Courage activated, and how the monster sent him flying. 

How when he hit the ground he could not stand, but felt his bones shifting and snapping into a new configuration as he changed into a wolf for the first time. How after he was dragged away, unconscious in his new form,  _ she _ had found him in the dungeons of⸺— 

“Twi?” 

He blinked a few times and looked to his right. He hadn’t even heard Four approach, but there the small hero was, concern lining his face. 

“Are you okay?” 

Twilight looked away again, training his gaze back on the water that glistened in the light of the setting sun. The group had decided to camp on the shores of the Spring of Faron for the night, as it was one of the safer places in the region, and it would be a valuable resource for them to stock up on their water supply in the morning before continuing on. 

Four remained still for a few moments, but then sat next to Twilight. He said nothing, left a comfortable amount of space between him and the wolf-cloaked hero as well, but Twilight could tell that Four was still worried. 

“Do you ever feel a strange sadness as dusk falls, Four?” 

The smaller hero remained quiet for a moment. “I’m not sure if sadness is the word I’d use for it. But definitely something…subdued.” 

Twilight nodded, hearing what Four was saying, but still feeling far away. So very far away. 

“It’s kind of calming,” Four added quickly, as if prompting Twilight to talk more. “Almost peaceful.” 

Twilight hummed as he exhaled. “My people believe it’s the only time our world intersects with  _ theirs _ …The only time we can feel the lingering regrets of spirits who have left our world.” The words of his first mentor felt strange on his tongue. It was as if he was not truly the one speaking, but rather him. 

“I…” Four began. 

From his peripheral vision, Twilight saw Four’s shoulders deflate and his head shake a little. He lost whatever he had been going to say, but placed a hand on Twilight’s arm instead. “Many of us have dealt with loss before, Twi. If there’s anything you need to talk about…” His voice trailed off again, but the end of his sentence was clear. 

Twilight smiled sadly. “I used to think my mentor had been talking about the dead when he said those words to me. And maybe he had been, but it’s so much more than that.” Twilight looked up, taking his gaze away from the water and glancing at the trees around them. How they stretched into the soft orange sky as if reaching out for something. “There’s a whole other world bound to this one, Four. People who used to live in this Hyrule, banished long ago to a different realm…I was rescued by one of them. She helped me restore peace to my world, and I helped restore hers.” Tears began to well in Twilight’s eyes. He did not let them fall. “She’s not dead, but she’s in the world my mentor spoke of when he talked of spirits. She’s not dead, but I did lose her.” 

Four shifted to sit closer to Twilight, keeping one hand on his arm and placing the other gently on his back. “Do you want to tell me more about her?” 

Twilight smiled through a small sniffle. “Maybe someday. But first I want to thank you for not telling the others about my secret. And I apologize that I haven’t been able to do that until now.” 

“It’s been an intense couple of days.” Four threw a glance over his shoulder at camp. Wind was propped up against a log, while Warriors and Legend changed the bandages around his stomach. The young hero had been able to travel on foot that day, but only in short bursts. He still needed to rest whenever possible so as to not reopen his stitches. 

“Well, “ Twilight continued, “I’m glad it’s calm enough for me to say it now. Thank you for not putting me on the spot to share my ability with the rest of the group, Four.” 

Four squeezed Twilight’s arm lightly. “Of course.” 

“I do hope to have your courage someday, though.” 

Four shrugged. “To be honest, I had been wanting to show you guys what the Four Sword does for a while. I just didn’t know how. And that game felt like the perfect way.” 

“Either way, I want to show everyone what I can do someday too. I think. I’m just not sure how they would react to it.” 

“Well, there’s really only one way to find out,” Four said through a soft smile. “But only when you’re ready.” 

Twilight nodded.  _ Only when I’m ready. _ His hand reached for the pendant that rested just above of his ribcage. The pointed orange and black diamond that wasn’t really a pendant at all, but a physical representation of the curse that Zant placed on him. The remnants of the magic that let him turn into a wolf at will. What was designed to hurt him turned out to be his greatest gift, as well as his greatest burden. 

“Do you think they’d see me as a monster?” Twilight asked before he could stop himself. 

Four was silent for a few moments. Twi was just waiting for him to say  _ yes _ , believing that Four was simply trying to figure out how to put it lightly. But then the small hero surprised him. 

“Twi, you were blessed by the Goddesses to carry the sacred power of the Triforce of Courage. You left your village not to save the world, but to save your friends. You let other members of our group eat before you do. You train with Warriors when he’s feeling down. You go looking for Wild and Hyule every time they get lost. And I’m not sure if you’ve seen it, but Time looks at you the way a father looks at his child with pride. You are loved, Twi.”

Finally, Twilight’s tears started to fall. 

“If any one of them could even entertain the idea of you being a monster, then clearly they don’t know you at all,” Four concluded. 

Twilight brought a hand up to wipe his eyes, while Four gently rubbed his back. 

“And besides, you’re not just a brother to everyone here, but you technically  _ are  _ the same person as everyone here,” Four added. “And none of them hate themselves that much.” 

This pulled a small chuckle from Twilight. “You might be right.” 

They sat in silence as the rest of the sun dipped below the horizon. Dusk settled like a blanket over the land, and pinpoints of distant light began to dot the skies. Twi would have been content to sit there and watch the stars for the rest of the night, had he not heard Wild’s confused voice call from behind him. 

“Hey, Twilight? What’s this?” 

The wolf-cloaked hero turned to see both Wild and Legend illuminated by a blue glow. They stood about twenty meters from the group’s camp, transfixed by a lantern that floated a few feet above the ground in front of them. Legend was even reaching his hand out to touch it. 

Twilight jumped to his feet. “Wait! Stop!” 

Legend’s hand froze. Wild reached to pull him back. 

“What is that thing?” Sky asked from camp, his attention having been pulled to the scene after Twilight yelled. 

“Nothing good,” Twilight said, approaching Wild and Legend in quick strides. He placed himself between the other two heroes and the lantern. “Go back to the group. It will attack you if you get too close to it.” 

“What do we do about it?” Legend asked from over Twilight’s shoulder. 

Twilight could hear his heart pounding in his ears. For a moment he felt as if his breath had escaped him, but he forced himself to inhale and drew as much air into his lungs as he could. 

There was only one way to defeat a poe in his Hyrule. 

Twilight raised his shield for protection and quickly looked back to the group further behind him. Sky and Time stood side by side at the head of camp. Near them, Wind was propped up against a log. Warriors stood in front of him with his sword already drawn. Hyrule crouched near the firepit, ready to stand at a moment’s notice. Four remained near the waters of the spring, his gaze fixed on Twilight. The wolf-cloaked hero locked eyes with him for a second, and then turned back to face the poe. 

“I’ll take care of it,” he said to Wild and Legend. 

Twi heard Legend mumble, “ _ Come on _ ” from behind him, followed by the footsteps of him and Wild walking away. The lantern swung out, but it bounced off Twilight’s shield. He reached for the sword on his back out of instinct, but then he froze. The blade would do him no good. There was no way of telling where a poe’s soul was without being able to see it. 

Taking another deep breath, silencing the pounding of his heart in his ears, Twilight focused on the feeling of the necklace that rest against his chest. He could feel the gaze of every group member behind him, the people he had traveled hundreds of miles with, the people he protected with his life and who had protected him, the people who became his family. And he let the Twili magic envelop him. 

Twilight was pulled to the ground. His legs reconfigured into that of a canine. His arms were no longer his arms, but a set of front legs. Hair grew instantaneously from everywhere, and his teeth sharpened to points. By the time the transformation was done, his eyes could see clearly what his human eyes could not. And he lunged for the poe’s soul. 

It took a couple of bites to knock it down. But after successfully lodging his teeth in the soul of the wrathful spirit, Twilight ripped it away with a snarl and jumped back. The apparition’s body deflated, disappeared. The lantern shattered. And Twilight turned back to face his friends. 

They stood frozen. Watching him. Hyrule’s mouth was wide open in shock, and Warriors’ brow was furrowed in confusion. Legend looked like his eyes were about to pop out of his head, and Wind blinked a few times as if trying to come out of a dream. Sky had a soft but surprised smile on his face. Wild and Time exchanged a glance. Twilight found his eyes drifting to Four, who held the wolf’s gaze tight. The small hero offered a proud grin, and a subtle but firm nod. 

On a deep exhale, Twilight shifted back into his Hylian form. He brought a hand to the back of his neck and looked down. “So, uh…”

Wind cut him off before Twilight could even think of what to say next. “You’re telling me that you’ve been Wolfie? This whole entire time?!” 

Twilight forced himself to look at Wind, the red rising to his cheeks. “I—”

“Including that time when we went out to the woods, purposely helping you try to meet Wolfie,” Wind continued, “You were Wolfie then too?” 

“Well I—”

“And then when you said you were afraid of wolves? You only said that just to cover up about why you hadn’t seen Wolfie yet?” 

Twilight’s stomach lurched at the way Wind yelled. He gulped. “Yes. I have been…‘Wolfie’ for all of that.” 

Wind silently bored holes into Twilight with his eyes for a few moments. Then he burst out laughing. “Hylia, talk about dedication to a prank!” 

The tension broke in the air. Twilight found himself starting to chuckle, and one by one the other Links started laughing too. Twilight drifted back over to camp, and Four gave him a pat on the back. Twilight felt like he could breathe again. 

“Wait,” Warriors’ voice cut over the laughter. “‘So the other night when I was…You saw me…?” 

Twilight bit back his laughter. “Yes. I was the one who was there for you.” 

Warriors’ face flushed. But then he blinked back his embarrassment and a gentle, genuine smile found its way onto his face. “Thank you. I really needed your company.” 

“Anytime.” 

That night over dinner, Twilight explained to the group how it was that he came to have his ability. How what started as a curse transformed into the greatest power he had ever been given. How it scared him sometimes, but it was something he could live with. He made an effort to use it for good. 

Being good was all that Twilight wanted. He never really saw himself as a hero chosen by divine power, but as someone who simply wanted to protect. To bring light into the world in hopes of driving out the darkness. Sure there were parts of himself that he found scary, but he could manage that. His family still loved him. 

And that was all that really mattered. 

**Author's Note:**

> Well...I never thought that I'd actually be able to complete a series before! Just remember kids, your goals CAN come true. Now go forth and be great!


End file.
